27 Dead-Sexy Toys and Products for Your Living Room and Play Room

Andy Barter | Set Design: Bryn Bowen

A taste of the toys to come.

Naoya Fujishiro

Doodles in the Third Dimension

Sometimes two-dimensional scribbles just won't cut it. Make yours pop off the page with this cleverly designed compass that lets you draw with both red and blue pencils simultaneously. Use the included specs to give you all the joys of 3-D without the Michael Bay crash-bang overload. NPW 3-D Doodle Kit | $10

Ayah Bdeir wanted an easy way to teach engineering to kids. The result is littleBits, tiny electronic modules that snap together magnetically. They can be mixed and matched with household miscellanea to make everything from moving Ferris wheels to a pizza box phonograph. littleBits Deluxe Kit | $199

Naoya Fujishiro

Star Streamer

This 48-inch-wide kite with a stellar shape and fiberglass frame is designed by New Tech Kites, three-time Kite Manufacturer of the Year. Outfitted with ripstop nylon — the same material found in hot-air balloons — this tenacious high flier can shred in winds up to 20 miles per hour. New Tech Kites Shooting Star Kite | $40

Naoya Fujishiro

Wordplay

This reimagining of the classic 1930s version of Scrabble sports a style that's aged to perfection. It has all the gameplay you love, plus a solid wood game base, metal tile racks, and a storage drawer built into the main unit. Don't worry, the board can still be flipped over when you discover zzz is an accepted word. Vintage Edition Scrabble | $200

Naoya Fujishiro

Brick by Brick

If Lego Fallingwater wasn't enough to satisfy your inner architect, the Danish brick behemoth is back with a new set for design nerds. The 1,200-piece Architecture Studio comes with a 272-page guidebook filled with tips and projects endorsed by leading firms like SOM, REX, and Tham & Videgard. Lego Architecture Studio | $150

Naoya Fujishiro

Small World

A map without colors is like beer without hops. Geografia's Sectional Globes come with individual paper sections of Earth that can be colored in, decorated, and pieced into a polygonal globe. Bonus: When fully assembled, the globe tilts at 23.4 degrees, the same as the planet's actual axial tilt. Geografia Sectional Globes | $24 and up

Naoya Fujishiro

Beastly Mien

Great for little kids and adults with serious crafting deficiencies, these Animal Masks require no scissors or glue to assemble. They come in sets of eight: four farm animals, four forest animals. Made of 100 percent recycled cardboard, so the critters are ecofriendly too. Animal Masks by Andree Prigent | $20

The brew-filled cooler, the unwieldy umbrella, the awkward folding chairs — beach gear is bulky. The games you bring shouldn't have to be. These paddles from Brooklyn design firm Fredericks & Mae are made from Baltic birch and cork, making them a cinch to carry from your car, through the sand, to the shore. Fredericks & Mae Beach Tennis | $140

Naoya Fujishiro

Jump for Joy

Forget about those plastic, beaded death whips you used in grade school. The Tybee jump rope is constructed from a much more pleasing (and skin-friendly) combination of materials: a leather cord, walnut handles, and colorful grips strengthened in hot water. General Manufacturing Tybee Jump Rope | $65

Photo: Andy Barter | Set Design: Bryn Bowen

And now for the media room.

Naoya Fujishiro

Sip Stopper

Switching off the HDTV doesn't stop the flow of electricity — it can stay on in power-sapping standby mode indefinitely. It doesn't have to. Simply plug your components into this strip and use the included wireless switch to put an end to phantom load forever. Belkin Conserve Switch | $40

Naoya Fujishiro

Face Value

Graphic designer (and father of I ♥ NY) Milton Glaser wanted a new way to visually suggest the passing of time. The result is the Presto Clock. As its single red hand progresses, the clock's blue face gradually changes to reveal tiny white perforations. It's not precise timekeeping, but the abstract patterns are enough to give you a general sense of time. Presto Wall Clock | $80

Naoya Fujishiro

Dictionary of Desire

This 999-object, three-volume tome is a must-have set of reference books for designers, but it's also a stimulating read for anyone who appreciates the beauty in man-made objects. The 3,300 pages of these books span more than 200 years of industrial design, featuring beautiful photography and fascinating anecdotes about how iconic products came to be. The set slows down history long enough for you to take a leisurely stroll through the evolution of visual language. Phaidon Design Classics | $175

Naoya Fujishiro

Stream Dream

Roku has spent the past few years refining its streaming technology. And with the Roku 3 it really shows. Whether it's the telepathically quick interface, the convenient cross-platform search, or the genius headphone jack built into the remote, this unassuming puck is all you need to tap into the world of online content. Roku 3 | $100

Naoya Fujishiro

Stool Star

European designer Tom Dixon adds some geometric flair to the standard stool by effectively fusing two cones for added stability and comfort. Tom Dixon Drum Stool | $538 and up

Naoya Fujishiro

Film Strip

Soundbars are typically designed to replace your HDTV's anemic speakers. Sonos' Playbar does that but has a much cooler additional function: It integrates with Sonos' venerable multiroom audio system, streaming music from your computer or online service. Sonos Playbar | $700

Courtesy of Xbox

The One to Get

That the Xbox One looks more like a DVR than a gaming console is no accident. Armed with an 8-core x86 processor and a new, sensor-laden Kinect, Redmond's latest isn't just a platform for the next Call of Duty — it's also your living room's all-powerful entertainment hub. Microsoft Xbox One | $500

It's no wonder Greta Grossman's iconic piece of European modernism still looks fresh 65 years after its debut. Everything about the Grasshopper floor lamp, from its tripod stand to the rotating conical shade, oozes sophistication. Gubi Grasshopper Floor Lamp | $875

Courtesy of DWR

Round Up

The lowly coffee table is usually a design afterthought. Not this one. This round table has a raised lip to keep items from falling (or rolling) off of it. A small opening in its bentwood edge lets power cords through — or directs inadvertent spills to one specific area of the carpet below. Muuto Around Coffee Table | $700

Naoya Fujishiro

Spin Art

Audiophiles know that vinyl offers up a richer, more nuanced sound than those cold digital tracks. They also know you don't have to shell out audiophile levels of money to get a decent turntable. The Pro-Ject Debut III is outfitted with high-grade components and doesn't make your living room look like a DJ booth. Pro-Ject Debut III Turntable | $380

Courtesy of IKEA

Full Coverage

Eerily similar to a hard-to-find rug by esteemed design house Madeline Weinrib that costs nearly seven times as much, the Stockholm rug is flat-woven of durable, soil-repellent wool. And chances are your local IKEA has one in stock right now. IKEA Stockholm Rug | $300

Courtesy of DWR

Panel Pedestal

A media console is really a showcase for some of your most precious gear. So why choose something that looks like it was assembled in a seventh-grade shop class? Besides adding a touch of Scandinavian design flair to your living room, the streamlined Aura comes with plenty of storage options, a cord-management system, and a super-sturdy steel base for your most massive flatscreen. Aura Credenza | $2,595

Courtesy of Coalesse

Golden Throne

A lounge chair designed for working? Sacrilege! At least that's what you'll think until you actually sit in the Hosu chair. The lower half unfolds, converting it into a chaise. You can put your feet up and stretch out while the included lumbar pillow cradles your lower back. Throw in storage pockets and a cable pass-through and you have yourself one of the most comfortable workspaces imaginable. Don't fall asleep. Coalesse Hosu Chair | $2,400

Naoya Fujishiro

Trayed Up

Whether you use them to serve food, hold the contents of your pockets, or form tangrams, this series of modular trays are like a colorful puzzle waiting to be solved. Fashioned from powder- coated steel, the platters are designed to nest inside one another for endless arrangement possibilities. Hay Kaleido Tray | $15-45

Courtesy of Samsung

Cinema Parabola

Mom told you not to sit too close to the TV, but even she'd let it slide if the set in question was this forward-thinking Samsung OLED model. Its super-slim screen is curved to make your close-proximity viewing even more immersive, and its unique frame shows off this high tech work of art perfectly. Because it's an OLED set, you'll see twinkly colors, impossibly dark blacks, and the best contrast your eyes have ever witnessed. Samsung 59c OLED HDTV | $9,000